Those Who Seek Forgiveness
by Expressive Dissonance
Summary: AU. When Jenova spreads her poisonous influence, Sephiroth isn't the only one affected. Things happen a little differently in Nibelheim, and Gaia is changed forever. Eventual SZC.
1. Those Who Are Lost

Disclaimer: I don't own FF7 or its characters.

Brief warning: This fic has DARK THEMES and not only hints yaoi, but eventually end in a yaoi threesome. If you are uncomfortable with any of these things then this is not the fic for you.

Original Post Date: May 30, 2009

Edited: March 20, 2013

...

* * *

He could die and Sephiroth wouldn't care, not with the way those maddened green eyes were looking at him.

Gods _those eyes. _There was something else, something _inhuman_ looking out—

The faint buzzing he'd been hearing all day suddenly intensified, but he gritted his teeth and lunged at Sephiroth while the general had turned back to the Jenova creature he called "Mother." If he could just get him down, knock him out then maybe, maybe he could be saved. And the Buster sword was up, the flat of the blade swinging, whistling through the air—

And Sephiroth's enraged eyes met his in the reflection of the glass before he crumpled.

As those poisoned green eyes rolled up, Zack thought for one terrified instant that he'd _killed _the man, but no, he could see and hear the shallow, hitched breaths that lightly lifted the man's chest from his prone position. He only had a second to feel true relief before the unholy shrieking began. Enraged, ear-splitting cries that rattled his mind and seeped into his very being.

_My son my son what have you done my son you've hurt him filthy treacherous **human** filth!_

Gritting his teeth against the onslaught, Zack lifted his sword and fought the sudden fluctuation of hate, anger, and _rage_that was pressuring his skull like a physical weight. He met Jenova's glowing red eyes through the glass of her prison defiantly.

That was his mistake.

Suddenly there was glass; broken, shattered, sharp glass careening outwards, bending under the force of Jenova like paper and he felt himself yanked forward into the very face of the _ragelonging__**thirst **_echoing in his head.

_My child mine my cells mine Reunion we need you need Him join Reunion join me **JOIN ME.**_

The Buster Sword—oh gods, _when had he dropped it?_—was swept away and shattered into tiny pieces by a thrashing tentacle and Zack was left wondering with a sense of helplessness if that was what had a hold of him too. His arms strained against the tight hold winding round his upper body. He found himself inches away, face to face with that seemingly dead creature, but his mind told him that she was very much alive and she was _pissed_, wanting, aching, _needing_ the Reunion—

Zack screamed as she reached into his mind, her dark presence creeping in, planting that _needragelonging__**desire **_inside, oh gods, inside where even _he_ couldn't reach—

_Child my child my cells my vessel part of me do not fight me join me take your rightful place my son_

"_**NononononoNO"**_

—at some point he realized he had brokenly started the chant and gods—_gods_ he couldn't remember _why_, who he was, _**what he was fighting**_—

_My child my children do not fight me the Reunion the Stars the Cosmos the Great Darkness this world this vessel help me take help me feed **destroy.**_

Zack made a wordless sound of fear and anger as Jenova attempted to peel his mind like an onion; she was working her way down, sliding herself in layer by layer as she fought his resistance, feeding him _lies._ He didn't want this, didn't want _her_, only Sephiroth back and normal and in one piece. Smiling, sane, beautiful, and awkward, but _wholeunbroken__**human**__._

And Jenova paused in her mental onslaught, her alien mind brushing at the echoes of his last thought. The puzzled feeling caused her to loosen him up enough to begin breathing again and he panted in her grip, thankful for the brief respite. He took as many large gulps as possible and then he was tensing, breath seizing in his lungs again as more tentacles traveled freely over his form, touching, feeling, exploring and terrifying him in a manner that hatred could only have _hoped_ to achieve.

And suddenly there was no shrieking, just that gentle curiosity and sly calculation lurking on the edges of his consciousness—

_My child…show me my child Mother is here Mother is sorry show her show her what you **desire.**_

Unbidden, her words conjured up images of himself and Sephiroth; him leaning over the taller man while he was working, stealing glances at the stoic male and dreaming of seeing that stern face gentle and warm with soft green eyes—

_Yes show me child show me show us him him **Him**_

And then the image shifted to include Cloud; shy, timid little Cloud tentatively watching Sephiroth and himself with awe, his sky blue eyes wide and cheeks flushed with pleasure as they praised them on his mission successes—

_NonoNONO**NONO** filthy human traitorous **disgusting** corrupting **filth **not worthy of my sons pitiful weak **creature.**_

And the mock gentleness was abruptly changed to something like _hatespitepain _and there were tentacles crawling everywhere—in his mouth, under his clothes, and then she was pushing, seeking, and _taking_ in a mad parody of—_gods, stopitstopitSTOPIT__**STOPIT!**_

_My cells my Reunion my flesh shed this weak shell and sail the Great Darkness to feed to rest Reunion **Rebirth**_

"ZACK!" Hands were suddenly grasping his arms and it took him a disoriented moment between Jenova's shrieking to hear the panic in Cloud's voice and realize that she was still there in the tank. Watching waiting, seeking his mind, and raging at the fact that Cloud, a filthy unworthy _human_ had been the one to free him from her grasp—

"C'mon, Zack!" Cloud cried, shaking him as hard as possible.

She'd retreated when Cloud had touched him, but it was only a matter of time—

_DISGUSTING PITIFUL WORTHLESS **DOOMED** CREATURE LEAVE MY SON LEAVE MY SONS DO NOT CORRUPT THEM THE REUNION WILL NOT FAIL **WE MUST BE WHOLE**_

He knew his scream had startled the poor kid, but his only focus right now was to ride out the pain and try to ignore her words of joining and Reunion and _deathdestructiontriumph_—

"I-I can't!" he moaned, fisting his hands in his hair. Focus, he needed to _focus_ goddammit.

"Kill her Cloud! Get rid of Jenova!" Energy spent, he collapsed on his hands and knees panting, vaguely wondering at the clothing still on his frame despite the fact that he'd _felt_ her, that disgusting, poisonous influence invading him.

Shattering glass caught his attention and he weakly raised his head to find Cloud setting the Buster Sword aside to grasp long handfuls of mako-stiffened hair; he almost cried out a warning, but despite her cries and desperate mental screaming, Jenova was physically dead and defenseless—

_My son my my son the human filth is touching me do not let him hurt Mother defend me kill it kill it **kill it**_

"You're not my mother, bitch," he croaked, throat raw from his own screams. Cloud gave one final heave of her body and sent her over the railing into the mako pit below.

And then it was over.

As soon as the screaming was cut off into silence, Zack collapsed on the ground with a satisfied grunt, shuddering as his battered mind and body started trying to heal itself. His temples were pounding and there was something warm trickling from his ears and nose…

"Zack!"

He caught the sound of hurried footsteps before Cloud crouched beside him, frantically checking the wounds Zack had gotten from his fight with Sephiroth earlier, but the worst of the damage wasn't physical and he knew it.

"Hey, kid, if you think I've got it bad, you should see Sephiroth," he rasped, cracking his eyes open enough to catch bright yellow hair and worried blue eyes.

"Idiot," Cloud muttered affectionately as he gently used his shirt to wipe some of that trickling warmth from Zack's face.

After a moment, the injured First tried to raise his head enough to check on the older man himself, but then firm hands settled on his shoulders, pinning him to the floor like a week-old kitten.

"Cloud…"

"You're hurt, Zack," Cloud stated worriedly. "Don't try to move too much, okay? I'll take care of him, too."

The grim finality in Cloud's voice made him reach out and grab a hold of the blond. Just as he feared, hatred was open on that honest face and Zack knew there was nothing could do to change that, but just the same….

"Please, Cloud…help him. She was controlling him, that wasn't Sephiroth…"

"Shhhh," Cloud said gently, his hands wrapping around Zack's grasping one. Zack knew by the fire in his eyes that if he didn't do _something_ then the general would be left behind, or worse, _killed_, when Cloud took him away from the reactor and gods only knew what ShinRa would do with a broken Sephiroth.

There was a reason that SOLDIERs who went insane were a well-kept company secret.

"Please," Zack begged, throat aching as he held back tears. "He's always been the odd one out…don't you do it to him too…"

There was an agonizing instant where bright, angry blue eyes stared into his own, then the hate faded into bitter acceptance. Cloud knew that even if he got Zack out of here, the SOLDIER would go back once he was healed to find the other man; ShinRa be damned.

"Fine," Cloud agreed stonily.

Apparently, that was enough for Zack, because he gave the blond a sickly smile—a mere parody of his usual one—before slumping into unconsciousness.


	2. Those Who Find

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters, but the plot is mine.

Original Post Date: June 2009

Edited: March 20, 2013

…

* * *

There was fire everywhere.

It was consuming the town, burning everything in its path like a gleeful child intent upon destroying a city of block towers, one building at a time. Except this wasn't a plastic city some belligerent titan had happened upon. This was a place where real people lived, ate, slept, and tried to have normal, everyday lives. Even if he hadn't had the best of childhood experiences here, this was still his village, his _home_ crumbling to ash before his eyes.

And it was all because of Sephiroth.

_'Mom!'_

What about his _mother_?! Where could she be in this burning sea of fire and death? She had to be okay; she _had_ to be! He had to find her before it was too late. Gagging on the thick, cloying scent of smoke, Cloud stumbled his way through the town square, his helmet's night scope providing at least _some_ visual aid as he avoided the bodies strewn on the street and stray flames licking at his uniform. It was reaching, burning, and consuming everything in its path without discrimination.

Gotta find her, _gotta find her_; she wouldn't last long at all in this heat—she was too fragile. But she was alright, wasn't she? Of course. Even if the General had gone crazy, he hadn't tried to kill _him_, and since he looked like his mom and she was so sweet and kind, he wouldn't _dare_—

Bile rose in his throat as he finally came across what had once been his house. The small house crackled with flames, the old wooden beams having long-since collapsed in on the tiny structure. There was no movement, no cry for help. _Nothing_.

"Mom," he whispered, breath halting in his lungs. His body was going numb, freezing from the inside out as he stared uncomprehendingly at the flames. His mother…she was gone. She was gone, like this town was and it was all _Sephiroth's_ fault.

"Sephiroth," he hissed, angry tears squeezing out of his eyes, blurring his hazy vision of the burning town. Sephiroth had done this and Sephiroth would _pay_ for this. How could a hero do such a thing?! No…he was no hero, he was a fucking _monster_!

And so Cloud ran, his mind positive and unyielding on one fact with absolute certainty: Sephiroth wouldn't get away; he was going _pay_ for this.

* * *

The Nibelheim mountains were cold, dark, and ominously silent. With mild, numbed curiosity, Cloud glanced back at the town some five miles away from the current footpath he was taking. An orange glow was barely visible from this height, and looked more like a setting sun in a shadowed painting rather than the scene of a burning inferno. It was deceptively beautiful for a place where people were dying, had died, and where so many of his beginnings had abruptly ended.

How many had survived that initial, bloody massacre? How many had been cut down like weeds under the Masamune?

A lone Nibel wolf, half-starved and attracted to the scent of fresh blood came out of nowhere as it sprung at the young blond. His gun was up and out before he even registered the motion, and a single report echoed in the foreboding silence like a triumphant shout. Foggy blue eyes gazed dispassionately at the pitiful creature with a neat hole in its forehead as it crumpled onto its side with a low whimper. Should he leave this here…? No, the scent of felled prey would bring even more predators, like Zu and dragons from their nests to feast; it was best to move the carcass in order to keep the path clear so that when they returned, they wouldn't have to fight the local wildlife.

Cloud was certain that Zack was strong, but he was more certain that Sephiroth was even stronger. How many times had the general held off some monstrous foe so that the rest of them could escape? And how many times had Cloud pictured those hands holding him close?

_'Don't think about it,'_ he warned himself ', _don't betray yourself, not when you need to protect yourself the most. You have to forget Him. He had done it fast enough when He became a murderer.'_

Sweat was just beginning to run down his brow under the thick blue helmet, stinging his dulled blue eyes as he finally reached the reactor. His breaths were harsh pants from the tiring trek to this forbidden hell, but he forced his aching lungs to draw in air in an effort to calm himself. He had to be strong; he had to be ready. Zack might need him and he was damned if he would let a monster like Sephiroth stop him from being there for him.

Face grim and determined, Cloud shoved open the door of the reactor as his momentum carried him forward, his lungs on fire from the run, but his heart was nearly bursting with the need for revenge. Why why _why _did it have to be _Sephiroth _of all people? Had the pressure of being general gotten to be too much for him? Even with the meetings and duties of being the General, hadn't Zack and Cloud been enough, _cared_ enough for him?

'Or maybe we were just unworthy of his notice,' Cloud thought bitterly. Had Sephiroth just been playing games, using them as his substitute friends in the wake of Angeal and Genesis's desertions? Everyone else seemed to think so, so why should he think otherwise? It wasn't like Sephiroth had the widest range of emotions in the first place, so why had Cloud thought that a little thing like _comradeship_ could change that?

A patch of color in the dim atmosphere caught his attention and he skidded to a stop beside Tifa's prone form, his hands yanking his stifling helmet over his head. No…not her too! What was the stupid girl _doing_ here! A shuddery gasp from her crumpled form alerted him to the fact that she was still alive, and he felt the sting of more tears in his eyes as he propped her up in his lap.

"C'mon Tifa…" Where was that stubborn Lockhart pride? Where had all that martial arts training gone? She was tougher than this; she had to be.

"Tifa! C'mon, Tifa, wake up," he gasped, gently tapping at her far too pale face. He was extra careful not to jar the fresh sword wound on her torso as he attempted to wake her. There was so much seeping blood that it looked nearly black on her white shirt. Would she be okay?

"Cloud," she whispered, shifting slightly in his grip. And he watched with relief as she weakly opened her eyes to peer up at him. "You came back…"

"Yeah," he murmured, brushing away a lock of hair from her forehead as she pried open her eyes to look at him. No, they would never be more than friends now that he had found so much more in Midgar, but someone as sweet and kind as her didn't deserve to see the horrors that had gone on here in Nibelheim.

Carefully, he slid his arms under her body to bring her down to the reactor entrance in case any other survivor happened by. This was the safest she was going to get for now, but he'd be certain to make sure she damn well _stayed_ that way.

An anguished scream broke his grim thoughts, making his eyes widen in fear and alarm. That had sounded like _Zack_! He rushed up the main staircase, studiously ignoring the stitch in his side as he made his way through the broken hinged doors. He paused in surprise at the scene that greeted him.

Inside the main room, scattered debris littered the dented walkway as a large metal carapace lay tilted on its side like an obscene caterpillar shell.

Behind and to the side of that, pale silver hair lay spread across the floor as a—hopefully—dead Sephiroth lay still upon the floor, splatters of red spread through that silver mass like scattered paint.

Another sudden scream and the sound of harsh panting caught his attention as he watched Zack practically fall to his knees in obvious pain, his body jerking sporadically as if something was igniting his nerves from the inside.

"Zack," he cried, sinking to his knees beside his friend to snap him out of his miniature seizure. Cloud hesitated to touch him. His eyes warily considered the nasty looking scratches and wounds covering his friend's body. What was going on here? From this close, he could hear the nearly incoherent murmurs of "No" and "Stop" being uttered as Zack shook like a leaf. His hands made contact with taut, sweat-soaked flesh as he wrapped his arms around those broad shoulders, shaking the older male with as much force as he dared. "C'mon, Zack, snap out of it!"

Another short scream tore itself from Zack, the desperation in the sound terrifying Cloud as the other male suddenly jerked from his light grasp and clapped his hands to his head hard enough that Cloud feared there would be bruises later. In a low, desperate voice, he managed to bite out, "Kill her, Cloud! Get rid of Jenova!"

Jenova? Who was that? There was no one else…

As if drawn, his eyes fell upon the mako tube he'd dismissed as unimportant when he'd first arrived. Revulsion twisted his face as he saw the pale blue-skinned monstrosity with deformed limbs and stone like, rust colored wings staring back at him from her prison. That red eye glinted with malice and he could practically feel the hatred rolling off it in poisonous waves. He shuddered as he tore his eyes away from the creature, already seeking something to break the glass with. What could he possibly use that could shatter a mako tube and destroy whatever this Jenova was? He caught sight of the Buster Sword, Zack's proud sword, bloodstained and lying a few feet away from its owner, glinting in the strange mako green light of the reactor.

That would work. He'd already trained with it before, so at least he could lift it.

Adrenaline surged through his veins, aiding his strength as he hurriedly lifted the large sword, grunting at its weight before he clumsily swung it into the tube. Glass shattered and stagnant mako poured over his boots, rushing out as he hesitated in front of that dead gaze. What was he supposed to do with it now? Struck by inspiration, he looked from the mako pit back to Jenova, carefully calculating the distance. Could he drag it that far? It was larger than him, but how much could a virtually dead body weigh after being suspended in a mako tank for so long? Decision made, Cloud wrapped his hands in the thing's hair, shuddering at how similar it felt to _His_ hair. _'Don't think like that Cloud_,' he told himself as he starting dragging Jenova's pale, unresisting body towards the mako pit.

It was a lot heavier than it looked, and the long, mako soaked hair was making his arms sting wherever the pure mako happened to touch his skin. Its body caught a bit on the glass, but the sluggish blue blood barely touched his pants and shirt when it was cut, so it wasn't like he was in an immediate danger from the weird stuff; the mako his skin was absorbing was more worrying than the odd blood. Zack's labored breathing was a sort of reminder to him that this needed to be done, and quickly. He heeded that reminder by pushing the boneless creature up against the railing in preparation for a final push into the bubbling green depths below.

He thought he heard Zack whisper something, but he chalked it up to his imagination; anything would be better than this oddly charged silence. A final push sent the teetering form hurtling towards the mako, and Cloud winced as a brittle, hardened piece of wing snapped off on the railing near his foot; there was a hiss of sound as the Jenova-thing sunk under the surface like a rock in deep water.

The sound of Zack's body hitting the floor was loud in the odd silence after Jenova's disappearance. He called out his friend's name in worry, hurriedly making his way back to his side. To his horror, Zack's ears and nose were freely leaking blood, as if he'd had an aneurysm while Cloud hadn't been watching.

"Zack…?" he called tentatively and lightly pressed one of his hands to Zack's neck.

He was just on the verge of panicking at the lack of response when the older man pried his eyes open, giving him the barest glimpse of glassy blue. "Hey, kid, if you think I've got it bad, you should see Sephiroth," he said thickly.

"Idiot," Cloud muttered affectionately. That was so _Zack_; he wouldn't be him without his stupid comments and odd humor.

When Zack tried to rise from the floor, the alarmed trooper firmly pressed his hands on the brunette's shoulders, unsurprised that he'd even tried**.** When Zack was determined to do something, then he'd do his best to do it, no matter the cost. What did bother him though, was the way he easily pinned the other man with just hands; that action alone reinforced his belief that Zack was too weak to take care of himself right now and needed Cloud more than ever.

"Cloud…" came his weak protest. The one in question merely shook his head. He'd noticed the desperate look aimed at the silver-haired man. So Sephiroth was still alive, huh? Well, there was only one way to end this.

"You're hurt, Zack," Cloud stated trying to disguise his worry as firmness. The idiot was too hurt to go after Sephiroth again, and who knows how long he would stay unconscious? "Don't try to move too much, okay? I'll take care of him, too."

And take care of him he _would_: with the Buster Sword less than a foot away and the madman responsible for all of this unconscious—and therefore, _helpless_—it was obvious what he needed to do.

There was no room for the Sephiroth that had been with the thing that was there now.

Cloud pushed all thoughts and regrets of hero worship and familiarity from his head as he started to get to his feet, his face losing all remnants of softness. Imagine his surprise when the injured First Class reached out and grabbed a hold of the blond with a surprisingly tight grip. He stared down at his best friend in silent question.

"Please, Cloud…help him. She was controlling him, that wasn't Sephiroth…"

"Shhhh," Cloud said gently, his hands wrapping around Zack's grasping one. Inside, he was going cold with rage, his thoughts and heart racing a mile a minute. Was Zack being _serious_? How could he so quickly try to cover for that _monster_ after all the pain and suffering the general had put others through?

"Please," Zack begged, his blue eyes shining up at him with unshed tears. "He's always been the odd one out…don't you do it to him too…"

There was an agonizing instant where Cloud met pleading blue eyes and almost said no, but then the hate faded into bitter acceptance**.** He knew that even if he got Zack out of there, his friend would go back once he was healed to find the other man. No force in the world would stop him either.

"Fine," Cloud agreed stonily.

The smile on Zack's face warmed Cloud, but the warmth faded into cold terror when his friend's eyes rolled up and he fainted without warning, his hand bonelessly sliding from around his wrist.

"Zack!"

He cursed as he frantically began to inspect the wounds on Zack's body. The outside looked bad enough—Zack could have been through a blender for all the slices marring his normally tough skin; but the faint trickle of blood in his ears and nose made it obvious that some of the damage was internal, and much more dangerous.

Heart hammering, Cloud picked up the mastered Cura he'd borrowed from Zack's bracer and gathered his MP for a spell, hoping that his magic power was high enough to successfully cast on the man before him; a high level spell is virtually useless with no magic power to reinforce it, after all. Soothing green light filtered from the orb, and sunk into the unresponsive form; to his relief, the brunette began breathing a bit easier, and his color changed from grayish to a shade closer to its usual bronzed skin tone.

After giving Zack one last visual scan, Cloud hesitantly turned to regard the other occupant of the reactor room.

Seeing Sephiroth was still a jolt to his senses, he grudgingly acknowledged. Even splayed out unconscious with blood trickling from a head wound, the man was still breathtaking. But rather than looking like walking sex, he looked more like an angel that had fallen from heaven the wrong way.

What could he possibly do to keep Sephiroth from bolting or killing again until Zack woke up?

His eyes caught on the shine of the previously forgotten materia as he stared at the glittering jewel. Upon his initial inspection, he gathered it to be a mastered Stop.

He considered Sephiroth's prone form as he checked his MP on his stat updater, trying to decide whether or not he could cast and maintain such strong spells. He was surprised to find the sudden boost in MP from two twenty to nearly six hundred. And his Magic bonus went from fifteen to thirty! Baffled, he considered the Materia he had slotted. Soldiers got all the best stuff, because they had to find it on their own**. **Given the dangerous missions and the monsters they fought, well…it only made sense that Zack would have such powerful materia on hand, right? His eyes narrowed on the silver haired man, mind racing with the implications.

Well, at least he wouldn't have a problem containing him once the Stop spell kicked in.

…


	3. Those Who Protect

Quiet: I still can't believe this took me months to come out with. T____T

Disclaimer: Don't own the characters or the world. Just thought of the fic. :3

Thanks to my beta, the lovely ohxasphyxiationx! I couldn't do this without you. *huggles*

* * *

Professor Hojo, Head Scientist of the ShinRa Company's well known Science Department was not known for being a passionate man. But that morning, he'd awakened from the convenient little cot in his office with songs of death and joyous Reunion singing in his head, and he'd smiled. A genuine, open, joyous grin, not his usual thin stretching of lips or taunting smirk.

His first order of business had been to procure a helicopter and rouse the two Turks he'd bribed without Tseng's knowledge for a trip to Nibelheim, the very place Sephiroth had gone a week before. The lab assistants he'd ordered to get ready for departure along with him had never seen Dr. Hojo so happy as he'd been that morning. He hadn't called anyone incompetent idiots, ignorant fools, or raised his voice, not even when the clumsy new guy had dropped a beaker full of rare Gaea Marlboro poison. He'd merely ignored the sound and told all the staff currently not working on Project G and Project S to go home and not return until they received notices. And even though the Project G and Project S infected specimens had gone wild with seeming insanity and renewed vigor to escape, the Professor had refrained from taunting them and instead smiled. He'd even crooned to one mashed together horror in a sweet tone that set everyone watching on edge, "Soon, my precious specimens…soon…"

The light of an impending success was creeping into his eyes, but all of the scientists and assistants currently working under him had no idea what it was over; he'd been snappish and impatient just yesterday. Actually, for the better part of a week, he'd been tense with both anticipation and impatience. Everyone was certain that it was because Sephiroth had skipped his scheduled mako injections and "treatment" time on purpose before heading off to his latest mission, but the sudden change was both surprising and suspicious.

There had been express instructions left behind that stated if he didn't return then all of the Project S and Project G specimens were to be released; the G specimens after four weeks, and the S specimens after one.

It was beyond bizarre and baffling at this point.

Whenever Hojo was happy, something or someone most likely was or would be suffering.

As for the scientist himself, he knew that his excitement was telling; he was certain he'd seen more than a few disbelieving looks today than he had the day of his proposal for using his own son in the Jenova Project, but he couldn't bring himself to care. The blind fools had no idea what was in store for him, them, and even the very Planet itself.

Reunion was here.

Even if he'd wanted to resist, the Jenova cells he'd injected into himself had made that impossible long ago.

The nervous assistants he'd selected were either loyal to him and him alone, or simpletons that had families that could be used as "insurance" in case they ever decided they would leave or let information about his pet project leak.

He'd known Jenova would succeed and get a hold of their son like she'd always been meant to, so he'd prepared a special team of those disposable and those "invested" in the program like himself. They would ensure that Jenova's ascension would continue no matter what happened to him; Jenova had promised him a place in Reunion, and he would gladly take place once their son had awakened and given Jenova a new body to rule the Planet with. He had _earned _his right.

After all, he'd been the one to carefully plan that union, and _nothing_ would get in the way.

* * *

It had been a long journey to the far side of the mountain.

For Cloud, the feeling was only intensified as he had struggled to move two unresponsive males twice his height and weight through small, close-fitting cave systems that no one but the locals—

_the ones Sephiroth had __**killed**_

—knew about. Some were filled with small mako deposits that the occasional monster roamed into, but they were mostly safe as long as you watched carefully for signs of a wolf's den, or a dragon's nesting site.

The spent trooper slumped heavily against the wall of the carefully hidden grotto, his gaze on his two unconscious burdens. It had been quite a job hiding the two Firsts into the dense mountain foliage before scouting out a place safe from prying eyes to lie low until the…situation with Sephiroth was handled.

For the millionth time, Cloud wondered just what Zack could've meant by his words; the General had gone crazy and slaughtered the town! How could it not have been his fault when the evidence of Masamune's use had been branded on the torn flesh of the helpless villagers? His breath hitched at the memory of Tifa's broken form on the entrance stairs to the reactor. Strangely, he hadn't seen her upon exiting; hopefully someone—likely Zangan—had come looking for survivors and taken her to somewhere safe before ShinRa was called in.

ShinRa…

What would they do? Cloud wondered. How would the company explain the eradication of an entire town along with the disappearance of two of its top soldiers? Surely the Turks would come to investigate soon enough. And then they could hand over the General and…and…

…and he would get a slap on the wrist and a checkup from Dr. Hojo before some cover story was made to conceal their silver god's less than stellar deeds.

Cloud gave a bitter laugh. Who was he kidding? He worked for ShinRa; he knew how the company handled public relations. Any threat to the people's perceptions and it would be taken care of. Immediately.

'Now's not the time', he reminded himself. He had to keep them safe enough for at least Zack to recover enough to tell him what the hell had happened back there. His eyes strayed to the sight of strained features in the relative dimness of the cave as Zack's chest rose and fell in relatively steady breaths; every so often, a faint twitch would come from the soldier, and the faint shine of green hinted at mako working to heal him of whatever had put him in this state of…stillness.

Sephiroth looked deceptively fine and normal, but on the rare occasions Cloud remembered seeing the man actually sleep, there was a barely imperceptible shadow of alertness that made sneaking up on him particularly hard. But now…

He looked almost dead.

It would be so easy, Cloud thought, idly fingering the dagger strapped to his calf before tugging it loose, to make it so.

His blue eyes were sharp and steady on that pale face as he slowly leaned forward, shaky fingers reaching out to brush against pale silver as if in farewell.

Steel gray stood out starkly against pale, pale skin and it pressed, pressed, pressed, folding into soft skin, making the lightest of pinches. All it would take was one quick jerk, one hard slide…

Glazed green eyes slid open.

* * *

Hojo stared in acute displeasure at the mess that greeted his sight in the Nibelheim reactor.

After one of the Turks had informed him of what she'd witnessed, Hojo had been both pleased and disappointed in his prized specimen's response to Jenova. According to his little observer, Sephiroth had fought the First Class that had accompanied him on the mission, but the intensity and range had forced her to retreat to a safer distance. Luckily enough, the fool had enough sense to keep watch and had seen the arrival of the child that had…

Gaunt fingers clenched in reaction to the knowledge that some child, some weak human had ruined all of his life's work in the span of five minutes. Jenova was lost somewhere out in the depths of the Lifestream because some whelp had bested her. And to make matters worse, the insolent child had taken the bodies of both soldiers away before the Turk could confirm whether they had lived or died. Though it was likely they were both alive, Hojo decided. No one was going to drag a dead body around with them, let alone two.

He smiled in satisfaction. He may have lost Jenova for the moment, but she would eventually resurface. And when she did, he'd have her son ready and willing to take back this planet in her name.

"Find the boy," he ordered, not bothering to ask the Turk her name.

"And when I do?"

"Eliminate him and retrieve my specimen."

Even with Jenova in the Lifestream, he could still feel the call of Reunion singing on the edges of his consciousness like a faint beacon of light. He'd find Sephiroth and bring him to his Mother.

Then Reunion would begin, and Gaia would be nothing but a memory.

* * *

Sephiroth grunted in discomfort as consciousness flitted back on the edges of his awareness. He could smell so many things. Earth and sky, vanilla and sweat, smoke…and blood.

His eyes cracked open and met cold, angry blue from barely a foot away.

Silence reigned as he took in the sight of Cloud's usually earnest and timid face staring at him with the disgust befitting the lowest of the slum-dwelling monster population.

"Give me one reason why I shouldn't slit your throat," Cloud whispered, bringing into focus the odd pressure Sephiroth had felt against his neck since his awakening. "You murdered a whole town, hurt my home, my mother, my friends…why should I forgive a worthless bastard like you?"

Sephiroth carefully kept his eyes locked on the livid male and tried to remember what he'd done yesterday; the throbbing in his head reached an all new high as he flashed to fire, pale blue skin, a soothing voice, Zack's betrayed face—had he really done such a thing….?

Oh he was capable, there was no doubt about it; he'd been raised and created for that very reason, to be a mindless killing machine, a tool, a weapon for ShinRa to crush all opponents with—

Cloud had known better than to expect to startle the General, and he knew _way_ better than to expect begging, pleading, or even a bid for forgiveness. What he hadn't expected was for the General to slump against the blade like a puppet suddenly detached from its strings. Only the blond's quick backward jerk prevented more than just a thin line of blood from being drawn. Had the man truly lost it?

'Irrelevant, Strife,' he thought with biting humor. Of course he'd already lost it. Look what had happened to Nibelheim!

"Do what you will."

And suddenly, inexplicably, with Zack out cold inches away and this bleak eyed creature that was once a hero—_his hero_—Cloud was angry beyond belief.

His limbs began shaking as he clenched his teeth to hold back what would undoubtedly be a frustrated scream.

What reason do you have?" he asked in a low hiss. "What reason, what fucking _right_ do you have to look at me like that after what you've done? What right do you have to live when there are so many people that deserve it more than you? You killed her, you _killed_ her you bastard, and she was the only thing left for me here," he said slowly, his blue, blue eyes glowing hotly as he tossed the knife away and into the darkness of the cave, unaware that he had started crying.

"Why did you do it?"

When that impassive face just stared back, those incredible green eyes blank- so terribly blank -Cloud gritted his teeth. His face red with anger, he reached out and clenched his fist in a generous handful of that dirtied and blood-dulled silver and _yanked_, his furious eyes bright enough to rival a SOLDIER's for sheer luminosity.

"What the fuck is your _problem_?" he growled, uncaring if the Stop spell held or not; he wanted some goddamned answers and he wanted them _now_.

"Why, Sephiroth? Be a human for once, show some emotion! Or are you even capable of that? All those times Zack and I were with you, and you probably didn't give a fuck about—"

"That's enough, Cloud."

Stiffening, the small blond turned his head to see Zack, wearily half propped up on his elbows and looking at him with pleading eyes. Instantly, he deflated and crawled in the low space away from the still man with dull green eyes until he could help Zack sit up against the wall without further injuring himself.

There was a moment when Zack had to clench his teeth and bite back a cry of pain, because letting Cloud see any weakness would only make the kid even more anxious. By the way those worried baby blues stared at him, he knew he hadn't quite succeeded.

"Hey, I'll be okay," the First attempted to comfort, as he leaned his head against the wall. "Where are we anyway?"

"Still in the mountains," Cloud answered, glancing towards the rapidly darkening sky outside their hideout. "I brought you here just in case…something else went wrong."

Zack's lips firmed into a thin line. He knew what Cloud really meant: he'd gotten them somewhere safe before the Turks could arrive for "damage control." His eyes slowly roamed to stare at Sephiroth, who had slumped until his hair covered his face and his hands lay limply in his lap. He could see no visible sign of restraint, yet he was still just sitting there as if there was a great weight pinning him to the ground.

"Seph," he called softly, watching stiff shoulders hunch in as if protecting himself from a blow. "C'mon Seph, just talk to me. Don't get all Mr. General on me."

No response other than that initial self-protecting movement. Zack swore and carefully braced against the wall to lever himself off the ground. He ignored Cloud's protests about still being weak and limped his way towards the other man, noting that a few of the aches and pains he'd felt were a bit easier to manage and silently thanked the mako infusions and his younger lover for being so attentive.

"You know all that wasn't your fault. We have to tell ShinRa about that…_thing_. She got to me too, and I have a feeling she would've gotten to the rest of the guys if Cloud hadn't taken her out. You were just the one she wanted…"

He stopped, simply hovering over Sephiroth, knowing the other man could hear him, see him, _feel_ him, and waited.

Sephiroth was well aware of Zack's presence, but the hard ball of dread in the pit of his stomach was telling him that things wouldn't be as simple as his lieutenant was trying to tell him. He knew what he'd done. He didn't want to talk to the other soldier because how then would he explain the logical madness that had dominated his thoughts when he'd burned Nibelheim to the ground? How do you tell someone who trusts, loves, and looks up to you that the world is _different_? A darker, more hateful place because of the truth behind every cold night spent alone, every yearning look of lust from strangers on the street, and every scream of terror that had ever crawled its way from your victim's throats—

Humans were despicable creatures.

Even without Jenova crowding his thoughts with screams of reunion and destruction he'd known that. Humans made war on one another for profit; they lied, cheated, murdered, and stole from each other. To them, the world was simply a place to make money and survive in for their own selfish reasons.

Even if Jenova had tried to manipulate him into destroying them all, he hadn't needed much prodding—the truth had been sitting right there all along.

And now Zack was waiting for an explanation.

How would he answer? How could he? It was like Cloud had asked—what right did he have?

_Come my son, I have not left you…Find Mother…_

His eyes rose to meet Zack's and he said the only thing he could:

"She's not gone…Jenova still lives. And as long as she's still here, you're not safe from me—"

"Bullshit," Zack said harshly, staring at Sephiroth with narrowed eyes. "I watched Cloud throw her into the reactor and if she was, she'd be trying to control you again."

Silver hair slowly shifted with a shaking head and finally, distressed green eyes rose to meet uncertain pale blue.

"She's waiting…for _Reunion_."


	4. Those Who Regret

Quiet: HOLY FUCKING SHIT I UPDATED. QUICK, SOMEONE SCREAM WITH ME!!! LWKEDFJALSKFJ DEAR GOD I'M GOING INSANE FROM FINALS BEING SO CLOSE AND TEST AFTER TEST AND OMFG IF I WEREN'T SO CLOSE TO THE END I'D /WRISTS AND BE DONE WITH ALL THIS STRESS T.T

I'm sorry this is so fucking late but damn, I'm just fail with the writing lately. And I think I got myself addicted to Grand Fantasia D:

* * *

Aeris slowly sat up, her eyes wincing away from the bright patch of sunlight that was usually welcome in the church. Her head was pounding out a fierce tattoo against her skull, her mouth was cotton-dry, and bile—when had she thrown up anyway?—was a stale aftertaste that made her want to curl into herself even further; her own tongue was nearly choking her.

Small murmurs of distress came from the spirits within the flowers, and it took her a second to realize that they seemed abnormally loud because the Planet itself was adding its worried voices to the din. She rubbed her chest through her dress, even knowing that it would do no good. The Planet's pain hurt, but never had it been so strong nor had she felt it so acutely as she did now.

The power of its scream turning the usual buzzing whispers into a dull roar had rendered her unconscious, and it didn't bode well for such a reaction. Something had happened, and the bright little corner of her heart that she kept Zack tucked away in ached; the unease and confusion she'd been trying to ignore was only intensified with the knowledge that somehow, he was involved with this. From the moment she'd met Zack Fair, there'd been a quiet click of _rightness_ that let her know that wherever her path may lead, he would be a major part of it as well.

_Zack_, she thought, hands clasped in prayer. _Please be alright_.

-----

Cloud was curled up near the entrance, watching the clouded skies outside the cave slowly darken with the onset of evening. His face was pillowed by his arms, which were on top his knees. He had refused to look at Sephiroth after the earlier incident, but he'd since recovered the knife he'd thrown away so that he could hunt once full darkness set in.

The silver-haired man kept his head bowed and lay slumped against the rocks, his eyes on his hands, which had long been shed of their gloves. Something about this position was making his body twinge in pain and discomfort, but he would gladly take this in exchange for what he had done, and even so, it still wouldn't be enough.

He had taken in cold blood what he felt others didn't deserve, and it hadn't been because he was under Jenova's influence. On the contrary, Jenova's single-minded hatred had made him step back and analyze what she was after. He knew what she was; a being not of this world, one who would suck the world dry and take its empty husk as her own personal spaceship so that she could travel to another world and repeat the cycle.

There was one thing the entity had not counted on; even though Sephiroth was a part of her, he wasn't _exactly like her_. He was an improvement, a mutation, and his intellect far surpassed that of her simple parasitic reasoning of _takedevourreproduce_.

Why suck the world dry to find a new one when you could eliminate the source of the problem with little to no effort? Why not turn _this_ world into a perfect one?

His back twinged yet again and he bore it silently, mind swirling with the implications of his thoughts. What if Zack hadn't stopped him? Would he have killed him, and Cloud as well? No, he wouldn't have…not without regret, but at the time…

_What have you done, Sephiroth?! Answer me!_

He remembered the betrayal at having Zack point his sword at him, and after…after had been a haze of fury that had dried his mouth and made his throat ache with the need to scream and cry at once.

_You're not thinking clearly_, his mental voice-which sounded a lot like Zack-told him. _You didn't want to do those things, you were influenced by Her_. He'd been so ready, so stupid to let her convince him that it was his place, his _right _to change this world.

After his earlier declaration, a thick, almost tangible pall of silence had fallen over them all, and he was content to let it stay that way. He hoped they never knew what logical madness had settled over his thoughts; he didn't want to see Cloud's eyes burning with the light of cold fury, or Zack's quiet support turn into disgust.

-----

Zack would've tried his best to break the oppressive atmosphere, but he'd used almost all of his available energy making his way to Sephiroth's side; he was a SOLDIER, but his mako levels were dangerously low with all the healing he'd had to do. Normally, a SOLDIER heavily injured in the field would drop into a deep almost coma-like state for a few hours in order to properly recover, but Zack had only managed a small fraction of that.

Unfortunately, they didn't exactly have the luxury of time on their hands.

So he rested in a sitting position, half-awake and severely weakened from his depleted mako reserves. Faint shivers shook him every now and then, and he made sure to hide it lest Cloud grow more concerned. The whole Jenova fiasco had been a setup from the beginning, of that he was almost certain.

His encounter with Jenova had been brief, but his body was still on fire, as if his very skin wanted to jump from his bones and crawl away. He had refused to acknowledge it earlier, but something about Sephiroth was making his throat ache and his weariness increase almost tenfold. He could feel the other man there, like a beacon of light in the darkness, and it worried him that the sensation had yet to fade away.

Had Hojo done something to them before sending them to Nibelheim?

"I'm leaving," Cloud suddenly said, and Zack felt his heart leap into his throat for a moment. Surely the kid didn't mean…?

"It's the perfect time for a hunt," the blond continued, idly stretching at the mouth of the cave. He refused to look at Sephiroth, but he gave Zack a crooked smile that almost reached his eyes. "I wanna go out under the cover of night, but I want to leave early enough that I can see what I'm doing."

Zack nodded. "Be careful," he stressed, quite unnecessarily in Cloud's eyes.

"I'll be fine," the younger man said evenly before disappearing out of the entrance.

Once he was certain Cloud had left, he allowed himself to close his eyes in exhaustion and rest, his mind whirling with thoughts of everything that had and was happening.

"Seph," he called, not bothering to open his eyes. "How you doin' over there?"

Silence. He could still hear Sephiroth's steady breathing and could feel that he was awake; all he had to do now was get the stubborn idiot to talk to him. "He won't be mad at you forever, you know. Especially when he sees that you weren't yourself—"

"Fool."

This time, his eyes _did_ open, and all he saw was a slant of green glaring at him. He wanted to laugh and joke, he wanted to say something playful, he wanted things to be normal…

"I've been told I'm a lot of things," he said quietly, the weariness not hindering the intensity of his gaze, "but I'm no fool."

"And if I try to take your life again?"

"Then I'll try my best to stop you. Again," he said wryly.

"And should you fail?"

"Then Cloud will be here," he said with a perfectly even stare.

Fury flared in those green eyes and Zack braced himself for cold words, or even condescending disdain, but all he received was that unnerving stare. The General made a soft sound and turned his head away from Zack before quieting again.

No more words passed between them, despite Zack's attempts to the contrary.

------

By the time Cloud was ready to head back with his catch, the sunset was well past setting and night had crept into the mountains.

He'd hoped the task of gathering food would be able to help him concentrate on something other than the confused tangle of his emotions, but being alone was merely giving him more of an excuse to wonder where it had all gone wrong.

They'd all been so happy to finally get a mission together; for the first time, they wouldn't have to worry about missing the other, even if they would have to "be professional" in the presence of the other trooper that was along. But then they'd lost one person on the mountain, and the reactor itself had seemed to be forbidding their presence. If he believed in the old superstitions, he would've said that they were being warned away.

Still, Zack and Sephiroth had gone into the reactor fine, leaving Cloud to nervously avoid Tifa's questions. He had been afraid that talking would give him away, but luckily, the girl had grown sulky at his silence and begun pacing to kill time.

Then, just when he had thought things would be fine, Genesis copies—of all things!—had come out of nowhere and surrounded the two of them. Tifa had looked both scared and determined as she'd gotten into a fighting stance, but Cloud knew just how much trouble those things were; so he'd pushed her behind him and open fired on the creatures, managing to drop a few before something had slammed into him and sent him flying. His leg and shoulder had jolted with incredible pain, making it obvious that it was something serious.

Tifa had gasped and come to his side, far more concerned for his well-being than her own. Distantly, he heard the fluttering of wings and managed to look up in time to catch the sight of Genesis Rhapsodos in all his deteriorated glory making his way into the reactor.

He'd struggled to his feet then, determined to go warn Zack and Sephiroth, and protect Tifa, but in his weakened state, the clones had seen him fit for nothing but mocking cries and circled the pair like sharks. Despite his protests, the girl had stepped forward, her eyes blazing with fear and fury as she'd raised her fists, seemingly more than ready to put her training to the test. He had to admit, Tifa had done well in warding off the last of their attackers, but even she began to tire.

It wasn't until Seph had come gliding out of the reactor, face haunted as if all the demons of hell were on his heels that the clones had backed off. Unsure of whether they should pursue the man or finish off the weaker prey first, they had paused long enough for Zack to come barreling out of the reactor. It had taken the SOLDIER a mere moment to dispatch the clones, and he had nearly tried to carry Cloud back down the mountain. Cloud's pride would only allow him to let Tifa walk him down the mountain; Zack had saved them—no need to be a burden to him as well.

After the incident at the reactor though…

Everything had just gone down the drain.

The rough sound of breaking branches caught his attention, and Cloud paused, listening carefully for the source.

His heart nearly jumped out of his chest in fear as something _screamed_ from directly behind him. He'd barely turned enough to catch sight of bared _human_ teeth, gray-green skin and wild eyes before the thing was on him, sending them both tumbling to the ground.

The harsh rasp of the thing's labored breath and the acrid stench of mako panicked him enough to kick it off of him before hurriedly rolling to his feet. To his surprise, the monster curled on its side, rolling as if he'd injured it far more than just a simple kick should've, and he clutched his rifle nervously as it flailed in place, like a cockroach in its death throes.

Finally, a low moan came from its throat and then it was still.

Ever cautious, Cloud stuck the barrel of his rifle directly over its heart, before toeing off one of his shoes so that he could check its pulse with his foot; he wasn't stupid enough to get within in range of that thing when it has just attacked him, and he wasn't sure if it was dead or not. Luckily, no pulse greeted him, and he sat back to stare at it in silence.

This creature must be one of the mutations they'd been sent to exterminate. It was pale-gray, as if it had been leached of all skin tone, it's body was streamlined and apparently genderless, and the hair on its head looked hard and fossilized…no, crystallized was more like it. Faint green trails leaked from its eyes and mouth, and Cloud shuddered as he realized by scent and sight that it was _mako_. Pure, unfiltered mako that was potent enough to poison a SOLDIER if they weren't careful.

Despite the creature's odd colorization and slightly warped features, by its relative shape and size, it could've been human at one time.

And there were supposed to be more of these things out here…

Grimly hefting dinner over his shoulder, Cloud set off back towards the cave, mind whirling with the implications of what he'd seen.

* * *

Quiet: T.T Satisfied with this I am not. ;A;


	5. Those Who Flee

A/N: So...yeah. Story isn't dead. Also for those who didn't realize, my former penname is Quiet N Cryptic, but I needed a change. This chapter is unbeta'd. If anyone would like to beta this and other upcoming projects for me in the future I would be eternally grateful.

* * *

"So, wait, you're saying some kind of monster that looked like a human attacked you?"

Cloud's faint nod over his stick of charred meat was Zack's confirmation. "It was really weird…like it was soaked in so much mako it was practically leaking from everywhere. All I did was kick it to get it off me, but it seemed like it was in so much pain and just sort of…died."

"Those things from earlier," Zack murmured, eyes flashing in unease as he remembered the disfigured, once-human faces in the mako tanks of the reactor.

"Hojo's experiments," Sephiroth added, a subtle hint of distaste coloring his voice. "They…unnerved me earlier because it shows that he has no qualms about human experimentation."

_Liar_, Zack wanted to say. _You just flipped out because you thought Hojo had done the same to _you…

Now that he thought about it, it shouldn't have been as great a surprise as it had been at the time.

He'd been involved in the Project G missions for some time and it had been revealed that both Genesis and Angeal had been experimented on to some extent. So it only stood to reason that Sephiroth, who was stronger and more potent in power than both combined should have had some kind of enhancements beyond those of the SOLDIER program. It had long been rumored that Sephiroth was the genetic bearer of the first genes used for the project, but no one had ever confirmed or denied such a thing; Hojo was a very secretive bastard about his work.

Suddenly, Zack's thoughts turned to that _thing _they had seen in the reactor. His blood had been singing in anticipation the closer he had come to the place, but he'd thought that it had just been nerves. It wasn't until he had time to think that he realized that he'd been compelled towards the place the very moment they'd stepped in Nibelheim.

_Reunion_, she'd said, her voice sounding sinful and aching and oh-so right. _Come my son and take this world. Punish those who would keep you from your birthright. __**Killhatedestroy**__._

Jenova had been calling him.

Unsettled, the dark haired man frowned, eyes carefully scanning Cloud's features for any hint of harm.

When he noticed, Cloud rolled his eyes. "I'm fine Zack," he reassured patiently. "I can take care of myself, remember?"

Zack heard the words Cloud said, but sees the faint bloody cuts and purpling bruises covering his friend's pale skin. He knows Cloud, and he knows that the kid is more tired than he seems from the faint lines tightening the corners of his eyes.

After years of trying to read Sephiroth's expressions, Cloud is near child's play to read.

"We should leave soon," Sephiroth interjected quietly. "Should we stay here indefinitely, the Turks would eventually find us."

Thoughtful, Zack flexed his limbs a bit. The wounds he'd been sporting were nothing but memories now, and the soreness and fatigue he'd been feeling were lifting enough for him to move. It wouldn't be out of the question for him to go on the move now.

He was a SOLDIER after all.

But what about Cloud? He stared at the kid cautiously, his gaze not of a concerned friend, but of a leader. There were times where you had to step back and push your men to the limit, even when they looked like hell. It was the way they were trained. The SOLDIER way.

The ShinRa way.

Gods, they had turned them all into some kind of stupid, relentless _animals._ Like fighting dogs that were bred to attack and lock on until the enemy was dead. Why had it taken him so long to notice what they were doing to him, to his fellow soldiers? How had he not seen how utterly heartless they were training their own to be, especially soft-hearted, ambitious kids like Cloud?

Catching his eye, Cloud subtly straightened, a familiarly stubborn look stealing over his face. "We should go now, sir," he said mulishly.

For a moment, Lieutenant Fair stared at Private Strife, and then Zack could feel a warm smile cross his own face. The blond glanced away with a small smile, a slash of red across the bridge of his nose and Zack had to keep from laughing.

Yeah, the kid was definitely soft-hearted, but his stubbornness and tenacity more than made up for it. Zack grabbed the blond around his neck and gave him a quick, one-armed hug, chuckling at the surprise the younger boy displayed at the sudden action.

From his spot, Sephiroth watched the entire exchange, and felt his heart clench at how at ease the two were around each other. It would be an understatement to say that Zack had always been able to deal with people easier. He himself had never been able to make Cloud feel easy enough to smile like that. And now…

Now Cloud probably hated him.

And who wouldn't? He had single-handedly destroyed the boy's town in a fiery dirge of sheer rage because he'd been too weak to resist the allure of some freakish alien that wanted him to kill every human on the planet for some reason or other.

The worst part was knowing that the whispers had stopped for now, but that didn't mean that they were gone for good. He could feel the dark blotch that was Jenova settled in the back of his mind like an insistent hum, persistently trying to break into his mind and lure him into her proximity.

The power he'd gained just from being in proximity of the creature had nearly tripled when she had flooded his mind with the secrets to using that power. His eyes slid to Zack, who he could feel beside him; he was a bright insistent hum of _power_ that felt like a missing piece of himself.

"Yeah, we should probably get going," Zack finally said and stood up, completely unaware of his friend's train of thought. He trusted Cloud to keep up with them. And he trusted the kid to know his limits as well. While Cloud was no pushover, he was definitely no SOLDIER either.

Just as they began burying their dinner's remains, Zack swore that he caught a look of genuine wistfulness and unease in Sephiroth's eyes. When he opened his mouth to ask, the older man shook his head and left the cave, giving Zack no choice but to drop it.

He'd get to the bottom of it eventually. Sephiroth may have been an expert at hiding his emotions behind near-impenetrable walls, but Zack was an expert at being a one man wrecking crew.

…

* * *

The trek down the mountain was eerily quiet. Not only was there still a hint of unease between Cloud and Sephiroth, but all three were heavily aware that they were possibly being pursued.

Lucky for them, Cloud's solitary life tracing these mountain pathways as a child meant that they wouldn't get lost easily.

"Shit!" Zack whisper-swore as he skidded down the steep mountain incline they were traveling, sending rocks and gravel flying down the side of the mountain in a miniature landslide. A mother chocobo protectively stretched her wings over her nest of eggs and squawked angrily at the trio, her crest flared high in warning.

Sephiroth tried to stare the bird down in silence, but the unnatural amount of mako and otherness in him only made the bird more nervous and unsettled. She shrieked angrily and rather loudly in alarm at the man's presence, drawing Cloud's attention from further up the mountainside.

"Don't aggravate the wildlife," Cloud hissed angrily, creeping up to soothe the startled bird as he carefully herded the other two men away. "If you see a mother chocobo nesting, don't make eye contact and steer clear of her. They're really aggressive and loud when they're protecting their chicks. It could give us away," he muttered as they lost sight of the worked up bird.

Zack apologized quietly, but Cloud merely shook his head. "Just try watching the loose stones when you step."

He knew that the quiet silver haired man behind them was listening as well, so he didn't bother to look at him in order to direct any instructions to him. "If we go down this way, we'll cut into the path to Rocket Town," he muttered.

Zack frowned. "Wait, I thought that was north of Nibel?"

Blond hair waved as the cadet nodded and continued picking his way down the mountainside, nimble as any mountain goat. "Yeah, but we went around the north side from the reactor. I figure if we head down there we can make our way to some kind of transport and supplies while we try to figure out what's going on in Shinra," he said. Suddenly a lot less confident with that plan, he looked to Zack, his pale brows furrowed worriedly. "Is this a bad idea?"

"No way, spike! This is good! It's way faster to get to Rocket Town than to trek all the way to North Corel on foot." Zack reassured. Cloud nodded, his face relieved as he rapidly began to descend to scout out the road ahead.

Sephiroth narrowed his eyes as the smallest male left his sight. It was a sound plan but with the distinctive glow of his and Zack's eyes and his own notoriety, there was no way they could possibly just waltz in and remain anonymous. It was best they avoid any contact at all. "We cannot be seen," he warned.

His remaining companion looked at him questioningly. "...they are mostly likely radioing every Shinra base within this continent in order to alert them of orders to detain us." He hesitated, knowing that Zack would not like this next part, but..."There may also be orders…to kill me on sight."

"We should be so lucky," Zack muttered with unusual bitterness. He did not mean that he wanted Sephiroth dead; he was thinking of the things Hojo would do to the three of them if he managed to get his hands on them. It wouldn't be pleasant, it wouldn't be pretty, and it definitely wouldn't be humane. "I'd rather not have some old bastard trying to dissect me in the name of science, thanks."

"I admit the idea doesn't have much appeal for me either," a low, feminine voice said. The distinct click of loaded guns being readied caused Sephiroth and Zack to tense.

Fortunately, Cloud had already made his way further ahead and was long out of the way of danger. Turks wouldn't hesitate to eliminate a lowly foot soldier who' seen too much.

"Unfortunately, Professor Hojo would very much like to see you, General and Lieutenant," Tseng added grimly.

"Well, shit," was all Zack had to say.

…


	6. Those Who Fall

A/N: Been awhile, no? Well, it's Spring Break, so I have plenty of time to do some catch-up writing between Supernatural episodes. Don't forget, I'm on tumblr as quietncryptic and can usually be seen/contacted easily there.

Thank you to the lovely Tomoyo-chan284 for betaing for me!

...

* * *

A feeling of unease made Cloud pause and glance behind himself.

He'd gone a bit ahead to get a feel of their location, but the two SOLDIERs shouldn't be taking this long to catch up, should they? He frowned to himself, contemplating whether or not he should turn back and check on his companions.

Zack was improving and in decent enough condition to travel, but still a bit battered physically from his fight with Sephiroth. But...there was also no telling just how mentally affected the older male was by everything. Zack had a bad habit of internalizing everything that bugged him in order to keep others from being worried about him.

_I'll give them a few more minutes_, he decided, shaking his head at his own paranoia.

His boots barely made a sound as he carefully descended the mountainside, eyes and ears peeled for any signs of suspicious activity. At the rate they were traveling, it wouldn't take them long to reach the outskirts of Rocket Town. He hadn't much thought of what they'd do once they got there, but he was sure they could figure something out in the meantime.

Cloud caught sight of a sudden steep incline and bit his lip anxiously as he tried to think of how to get down it safely. Actually, now that he was considering it...

The blond tried to glance over the side of the obstruction, only to be met with an overhead view of sharp rocks. Sighing in irritation, Cloud decided to try his luck and pushed himself towards one of the taller trees overlooking the pseudo-gorge. His hands and feet automatically began shifting themselves to find the proper leverage to begin his ascent up the trunk and he found himself unconsciously biting back a smile.

To think, a year ago he had been a thin, wispy little corps trainee with no muscle definition and no sense of coordination at all. Now he was climbing twenty foot trees with ease as if he'd been doing it all his life.

A quiet _Click!_ was Cloud's only warning.

Before he could even think to react, a single gunshot report echoed from behind him and pain erupted in his unprotected side, causing him to tumble towards the unforgiving earth.

…

* * *

Shuriken watched her target from the shadows, careful not to cross their line of sight.

People wearing little more than rags hurried to and from, trying their best to go about their daily lives, no matter how dismal and bleak they might be. The female Turk followed her target as it moved towards the train station. When her target ceased to move and seemed to plan on being stationary for a time, Shuriken settled down against the wall of a nearby alley, and carefully readjusted her disguise. Her current state of dress made sure that anyone who chanced a look in her direction would ignore her presence as if she had never been there.

Such was the life of a Turk.

She knew that her current assignment was one that was meant to keep her out of the way, but there was no way she could have protested them even if she had wanted to. Tseng had gone to Nibelheim with the company's top SOLDIERs in order to keep an eye on them under the suspicions of Rufus and Reeve, who were both convinced that something more than what Hojo had been telling them was going on. Zack Fair and Sephiroth were at the heart of it, but she had been told that she would be more of a liability than a help in this particular situation.

Her prior connection to Zack had already been identified and acknowledged; they would never allow someone who had a vested interest to investigate such a case or expect them to remain objective and unbiased. Even her protests towards Tseng had been met with stony silence from her superior.

They were both attached to Zack, but Tseng was known to be able to ruthlessly put such feelings aside and do what needed to be done. Shuriken had seen the resignation in his eyes when he'd outlined to her the details for her personal mission in Midgar while he was in Nibelheim. Her reaction to being assigned somewhere else while Zack was sent into possible danger where she couldn't help had made him realize just how much she needed to relearn to distance herself.

Turks had no room to make friends. Especially of those who they might one day have to hunt down like animals in the name of the very company they worked together for. She knew that-had in fact been raised on that rule from the day she'd been taken from a lowly orphanage in the slums.

ShinRa was _always_ right.

A sudden movement from a bystander brought her out of her temporary trance. To her surprise, the target she had been carefully watching had disappeared.

Cursing herself for her distraction, Shuriken discreetly began scanning the train station, her amber eyes flitting carefully from the empty benches to the darkened corners. She'd stopped paying attention for a few seconds and was already botching a simple job like this! Maybe Tseng was right, maybe it was better if-

"Flower for your thoughts?" a gently amused voice wondered from behind her.

The Turk jumped, her body reflexively twisting around to find her target's large pretty green eyes staring into her own from up close. Her heart accelerated a bit as she wondered if she had been found out. Had the girl known all along that she was being tailed? And if so, why was she approaching the Turk so calmly?

"O-oh, I don't really have the gil to pay for it," Shuriken stumbled over her words apologetically, smoothly settling into her role of humble slum runner. Her eyes caught and held that of the Ancient she had been ordered to tail and she saw no hint of suspicion in those deep green eyes, merely warmth and a soft amusement.

"Nonsense," A soft hand marked with specks of dirt reached out and carefully tucked the flower into the russet strands of Shuriken's hair, "sometimes talking to someone is the best way to reward them," the girl known as Aerith Gainsborough said.

Immediately, Shuriken found herself liking this young woman. It was no wonder Zack had fallen so hard for this girl as a green young Second Class. Her sweetness and compassion were like a beacon of light in the darkness of a city owned and ruined by ShinRa. For a moment, she hesitated, not sure whether or not she should try to deceive this girl or simply give in to the impulse to tell her that it was ok to talk. The unwavering honesty on the face of the young woman crouching in front of her with earnest green eyes was a bit unsettling.

Sensing her plight, Aerith tilted her head and rose to her full height, lightly brushing at the hem of her dress. "It doesn't matter if you're a Turk or not, talking to me has to be better than letting whatever's bothering you eat away at you like this," the younger woman said with light amusement as she held out her hand to a suddenly shocked Turk.

Unthinkingly, Shuriken grabbed onto the offered hand and was brought to her feet. Her cover blown, the female Turk gave in without protest and began following the Ancient. As they began walking in the direction that Shuriken knew led to the church where Aerith grew her flowers, the young Turk couldn't hold in her curiosity any longer.

"How did you know?" she asked, keeping her attention on their surroundings in case some thug got the idea to try and jump them.

"You feel different," came the immediate response. "Plus, the more a living being tries to hide, the more obvious its presence is. You can't bottle up that much life energy for very long," the girl added matter of factly.

Green eyes locked onto her own, and Shuriken felt something foreign grip her mind, almost as if it was searching and scanning her for something. After a moment she blinked and looked away from the other girl, distinctly uncomfortable.

Silence reigned between the two young women as they made it into the Sector 5 area. Like always, it was just as rundown, but for some reason the closer they got to the church, the more charged the air began to feel, almost as if the world was holding its breath. A rare shaft of sunlight illuminated the area, and Shuriken gazed upward in wonder at the neat hole in the plate above. The way it framed the once majestic spires of the ruined church made it seem ethereal, almost sacred.

A soft creak drew her attention back to the flower girl, whose green eyes were alight with soft understanding as she gestured for the Turk to enter her home away from home. As expected, the place was empty, the once sturdy pews haphazardly stacked against the walls and the rotted floorboards creaking with every step they took. Shuriken could feel something warm, almost expectant as they drew closer to the small bed of yellow flowers settled directly under a hole in the church's roof.

There was a soft hushed sound as the young Ancient crouched before the flowers. "I'm home," she said quietly, and reached out to stroke the petals of the closest flower.

Amber eyes stared warily at the young woman and Shuriken could see just what it was about her presence that was both unsettling and soothing.

She truly was a child of the Planet.

"I used to be afraid of people like you," Aerith said suddenly, her emerald eyes seemingly far away as she recalled some memory.

Obliging her subtle cue to begin speaking, Shuriken crouched next to the young woman and reached out for a soft flower petal. "What changed that?" she asked, contemplating the cool dampness of water on her fingers.

"Zack. He showed me that not everyone in ShinRa is bad."

A wistful smile tugged at Shuriken's lips. "He has that effect on people."

Those far-seeing eyes locked onto her own, and again the Turk felt that foreign sensation in her mind as she gazed back at the other woman. "He changed something in you, too. Even when you didn't want him to."

Aerith didn't seem surprised when the Turk averted her eyes and didn't answer; the flower girl merely leaned back on her heels and gazed towards the rafters of the church, her eyes closing for a brief moment. When they opened again, she was serious, and the abrupt shift from warm motherly aura to that of a worried young woman threw the Turk off balance.

"Something unnatural has awakened," she whispered, her stare piercing into the Turk's. "And it's touched Zack," she added softly.

...

* * *

"You're making a mistake."

The two SOLDIERs had recently been herded into a nearby vehicle like cattle, and Zack wasn't proving to be very receptive to the treatment. The SOLDIER was currently glaring daggers at his former comrade.

Tseng sighed. "I'm simply doing my job, Fair," the Turk said calmly, as if holding people at gunpoint was a normal everyday event.

Two other Turks that had been sent with Tseng as backup were also aiming at the two SOLDIERs as a third carefully snapped a set of specially made bracers around both Zack and Sephiroth's arms, necks, chests and limbs to prevent the both of them from escaping.

Normal restraints didn't have a chance in hell of holding back super soldiers like First Class, but with Hojo's special SOLDIER-resistant materials, there was no doubt that these would do the job. Zack had personally seen a five ton behemoth and grand horn hybrid be contained by the very same cuffs that he was currently sporting. He gave the Turk who had finished securing the restraints a cold glare, and the trainee made a small noise of fear before scrambling away to begin giving Sephiroth the same treatment.

Tseng had not expected Zack to cooperate very easily, so he had aimed the barrel of the gun he held directly at Sephiroth's heart. He knew the General would most likely survive a shot through the heart without much complication, but _Fair_ didn't know that. The dark haired First Class was very accurately profiled as the heroic type, so Tseng had decided to play dirty and use those traits to his advantage. It wasn't a very fair trick, but he was a Turk-the completion of the mission was tantamount and far more important than being "fair."

When Tseng had explained that the gun held a special compound created by Hojo that would immobilize a SOLDIER by attacking the mako solution circulating through their bodies -causing extreme pain and suffering in the process- Zack had rapidly given up any resistance. The Gongagan had simply bristled in disbelieving anger at Tseng, his fists clenched by his side as he realized the implications of the Turk commander's words. They had worked together often enough for Zack to know when the other man meant business.

Zack gave a bitter laugh. "I guess doing your _job_ means a lot more to you Turks than your comrades."

The Turk commander gave no indication that he'd even heard the other male and gestured for his men to exit the containment vehicle. "I would suggest you gentlemen don't try to remove those collars on your own. Any unauthorized release of the pressure locks will immediately trigger the needle mechanisms hidden inside and you will be given the anti-SOLDIER serum along with a series of electronic impulses meant to scramble your senses. From what I've seen, it's a very painful injection," he added.

Sephiroth calmly stared back at Tseng, his head leaning back against the containment unit's wall and his silver hair tucked awkwardly into the neck restraint. His eerie jade eyes were almost empty, as if he was resigned to whatever his former comrade had planned for him. It was rather odd seeing such a powerful man, one who could intimidate others, including Tseng himself so defeated and hopeless.

"Tseng," Zack called, and the commander glanced over at the chained male to show he was listening before once more scrutinizing the general, who gave no indication of any discomfort under the stare.

He had, after all, been treated as a lab rat for his entire life by his so-called "father."

"The trooper we were with...don't hurt him," the dark haired male said lowly. "He has nothing to do with this, so just let him go!"

A flicker of something went through the general's eyes and Tseng found it interesting that such a lowly soldier had garnered attention from two of the top ranking soldiers in ShinRa.

Intrigued, the Turk commander gave both SOLDIERs a sideways glance before turning and climbing his way out the back of the truck's containment unit.

"Tseng? Tseng! _Don't hurt the kid_!" Zack growled, his eyes glowing fiercely in his anger as the doors began to shut.

"Tseng, answer-!"

The door clanged shut and Tseng listened to the curses of the enraged First Class before saying out loud, "Our orders were only to apprehend the SOLDIERs First Class Zackary Fair and Sephiroth in order to prevent the possible leakage of valuable company secrets and property. Nothing more, nothing less."

The sudden silence was almost enough to make Tseng snort out loud. Instead, he simply began checking the truck's security locks and pulled out his PHS.

"Targets apprehended. Grid location NW Sector, Nibel Mountains" the Turk commander reported into the phone. He listened for a moment, quietly soaking up the information being relayed to him. "Yes, sir. Understood," he said, and flipped his PHS closed.

"Orders, Sir?" One of the new Turks asked uncertainly as the dark haired man began making his way to the front of the truck.

"We're done here," Tseng said simply. "Infantryman Strife is now officially considered KIA and the targets have been acquired. Let's move out."

"Yes, Sir!"

...


	7. Those Who Plan

A/N: This has actually been done since Spring Break last week but I wanted to give myself a bit of time to write the next chapter out. I tend to rush details if I update too fast. Also, if you review and I don't answer, please don't be offended, I'm simply busy and/or cannot think of a proper reply. Rest assured I do look at them though. =)

Thank you Tomoyo-chan for betaing for me!

Edit: FFdotnet screwed up a bit of formatting, joy.

...

* * *

"Damn it, damn it, _damn_ it!" The angry litany ended with a solid thump against the metal of the truck and a bout of frustrated tugging that rattled chains.

"You are only making this worse," Sephiroth said quietly.

The sound of his quiet voice stopped Zack's struggling. The blue eyed first class clenched his jaw in silent anger as he stared at his eerily still superior, who remained with his head leaned back and eyes shut.

An angry growl spilled from Zack's lips as he glared at Sephiroth. "You can't be serious. Cloud is out there all by himself, probably dead or dying and you're calm?!"

The general was silent. Zack, taking that as a concession, pressed his case. "I don't want to be in here on my way to become Hojo's guinea pig when I could be finding Cloud and keeping him safe! He's not a SOLDIER! The Turks will-"

"The Turks will not bother Strife," Sephiroth interrupted.

Pure anger ignited Zack's eyes, turning them from their usual blue into a glowing blue-green. "Aren't you worried about him at all?"

Silver hair whispered as Sephiroth's head shifted in Zack's direction. Weary jade eyes peeked from beneath silver lashes as the general merely stared at his subordinate and friend. Something about the older male's lethargy was setting off alarm bells for Zack, but just as he opened his mouth to ask what was wrong, the general opened his own mouth, cutting him off.

"Tseng was telling us that he would not have his men pursue Cloud."

All things considered, Zack was rather skeptical, and it showed in the half-scowl he gave his superior. "Are you sure about that?"

Sephiroth nodded. "He is a shadow in ShinRa, but he has his own brand of honor," the silver-haired man mused quietly as he once more closed his eyes.

The relief Zack felt at the simple statement was almost suffocating. The SOLDIER released the breath he hadn't realized he was holding and stared at his friend. The normally pristine general looked beyond rough at this point. His once expensive looking leather trench coat had several rips and tears in it and his long hair was mussed and tangled. Even his face, which was normally smooth and stern was lined with weariness and was paler than normal. As he watched, the general tried to shift against the wall, only to stiffen as his shoulders and back tensed in pain.

"You ok, Sephiroth?" he asked, more than a little concerned. The older male had been doing that a lot. It was as if he were trying to get comfortable and only ended up aborting the motion prematurely.

The older man didn't bother to answer; Zack took that as his hint to settle down and let him recover in peace.

The glide of the vehicle on the road momentarily distracted the dark-haired soldier. He winced as he remembered their current predicament. They had been captured and were surely on a one way trip straight to Hojo's labs. No doubt the creepy scientist would like to get his hands on them in order to dissect them and find out what had gone on in the reactor.

Against his will, Zack's thoughts turned to the thing that had invaded his mind in the reactor. He'd never felt something so domineering or invasive in his entire life. The sheer presence of the creature had made him crumble to its influence without even noticing that it had been in his mind in the first place.

_How had Sephiroth survived it?_ he wondered. The force of Jenova's voice had been all-encompassing and absolute. It was a furious demand to comply, and an order to reunite with something far larger than any authority he had ever obeyed. At one point, it had felt as if the voice had been pulling on something hidden inside him, coaxing it to the surface and rearranging his very body with the intent of dragging it out by force.

If Cloud hadn't come when he had, there was no telling what would have happened to the two First Class SOLDIERs. It most likely wouldn't have been pleasant, though.

Zack shivered and gave his arm bindings another testing jerk. He scowled at the lack of slack before tilting his head to the ceiling and closing his eyes.

_Here's to hoping the kid's okay,_ he thought.

…

* * *

"Sir, Veld has issued the order to detain and collect all the remaining survivors of Nibelheim to this laboratory as you ordered. All of the currently gathered specimens are now sedated and awaiting assignment."

"Oh? My my, that man is quite a role model for you Turks, is he not? He has such efficiency and devotion to following orders. I would have thought he would try to refuse my orders on grounds of human rights or some other nonsense." The head scientist of ShinRa's science department folded his hands behind his back and smirked at the Turk reporting in to him.

"Is that all then?"

The nervous Turk hesitated for only a brief moment. "General Sephiroth and First Class SOLDIER Fair are now in Turk custody and on their way to the Rocket Town transport deck. They're scheduled for shipment to Midgar for a desertion trial after the launch ceremony there."

Hojo pushed his glasses further up his nose and gave the Turk a mild glare. "Who is the one responsible for their capture?"

The Turk seemed to hesitate, his expression distinctly uncomfortable under the scientist's displeased stare. "Commander Tseng, Professor."

The Professor was silent as he processed the information. He knew that Tseng was not obligated to follow his orders and would in fact try his best not to follow them-with Rufus and Reeve's hidden blessings of course. It explained why his prized specimen and the other SOLDIER were not already on their way back to the underground labs here in Nibelheim.

"What of the boy who lost me my Cetra specimen?" he demanded. "What did they do with him?"

The Turk gave a nervous shift of his feet, but the Professor did not notice; his attention was solely focused on the data charts in his hand. "Silencer hasn't reported in yet, but the infantryman Cloud Strife was pronounced 'Killed in Action,' sir. Most likely he resisted capture and had to be taken down."

"That's...convenient," Hojo sneered, more to himself than anything as he began flipping through the file he'd acquired on Strife. "And I suppose Tseng is also the one who issued that deliberation."

"Ahh...yes, sir," the young spy confirmed nervously.

"Well, that _is_ rather unfortunate," the scientist conceded, his eyes lingering on a particularly interesting bit of information one of his assistants had overlooked. "Private Strife seems to have an odd affinity to mako and an almost startling compatibility ratio to Jenova cells."

The scientist was silent yet intrigued as he painstakingly flipped through the documents before him. According to these charts, the boy had been so compatible to the mako, it had been necessary to withhold him from the full treatments in order to prevent his personality from suffering. It had simply been too dangerous to immerse him in a mako tank for the full amount of time it took for a SOLDIER to be created, so he had been rejected from the program.

Hojo's eyes narrowed as he came across one of the researchers' notes.

_Despite Strife's brief contact with the Jenova-S dilute, he has shown a startling increase in his physical condition. A follow-up exam revealed Cadet Strife had an increase in overall stats in a mere month; bone density ratio increased by 21.33%, muscle mass ratio increased by 12.78%, and eyesight/night vision radius reported increased by 23%. Jenova cells seem to have been assimilated into host body structure and forced into a dormant state._

The Turk watched uneasily as the professor's cold eyes began to shift into an expression of almost crazed glee. Beneath his suit sleeves, goose bumps had broken out along his arms and he suppressed the urge to shiver. Professor Hojo's beady little eyes gleaming with such greed and speculation could only mean bad news for someone else.

Hojo felt a faint stir of excitement. The ShinRa scientist wondered how he had missed such vital information before. Such a severe affinity to mako along with almost perfect harmony with Jenova cells...it was as if this boy's body had been _made_ to be a puppet. All that would be needed was a bit of prolonged mako exposure to suppress or dissolve the boy's personality and the Jenova cells would simply reactivate in order to ensure the body's survival. And with no personality to repress the instincts of the Jenova cells, the body would be perfect as a vessel for Jenova's core to return to from the Lifestream. And the use of that boy's body would be deliciously ironic, since _he_ had been the one to dispel her into the Lifestream in the first place.

Then a thought slithered in, somewhat dampening the scientist's excitement, causing him to scowl. That's right; the stupid boy had been pronounced dead, hadn't he?

The Strife boy could have been a wonderful specimen, but if the Turks were to be believed, he was now dead and out of Hojo's reach. A stroke of inspiration hit. Hojo reached his gaunt hand up and adjusted the glasses on his equally gaunt face as a thin smile broke out across his pale features.

That did not, however, mean that he couldn't still be of _some_ use to the scientist.

"Bring me the body of Private Strife," Hojo ordered the Turk briskly, plans already forming on what to do with Strife's unique genetic code and compatibility once it was in his hands.

...

* * *

Even with war going on, life would continue as normal for certain establishments. If anything, wars and disaster only made places like this even more popular and sought after.

The bar was lively and active, a direct contrast to the gloomy, tense atmosphere of the world outside its doors. Well-endowed women in traditional Wutaian kimonos served the men their drinks, their painted faces beautiful in the warm light. Several groups were engaged in loud chatter, their bodies and mouths animated as they all swapped stories or gossip about the current war going on inside their borders. In the darker corners of the room, several single men were drowning their sorrows and worries with their choice of alcohol.

One man in particular was seated in a booth that had a view of the entire room. His small frame was settled with perfect posture into the worn seats as both hands gripped onto a cup of steaming liquid. His face was carefully hidden under a low white hood, but what little was shown happened to be his lips, which were settled into a firm, neutral line.

After a moment or two, the person blew on his cup, causing the steam to gently curl away before he took a small sip. The noise of the bar receded a bit as the door opened and another person entered, but once their identity was confirmed as non-threatening, the usual noises continued as if they had never even ceased in the first place.

A few seconds later, a shadow fell over the lone man's table and the hood tilted slightly upward as he regarded the new arrival. A stern Wutaian face gazed down at the cloaked male, his face lined with age. To most, he would seem harsh and unfriendly, almost angry with his sharp features and narrowed eyes. The cloaked male knew however, that this man in particular was merely a proud patriot of the highest elite ranking and unashamed to let others know it.

Both men were silent as they assessed one another, until finally, the cloaked man gestured towards the opposite side of the booth from himself.

"That better not be sake, boy," the newcomer grumbled to the other in accented Continental.

The cloaked stranger took another small sip of his drink before giving a low exhale. A small smile curled across his lips. "And if it were?"

"Hmph," the stranger grunted, knowing when he'd been gotten. "Always the brat even with your affinity for politics."

A small huff of laughter escaped the cloaked male's lips. Despite its coldness, it was surprisingly easy to tell that its owner was rather young. "No worries, old man, it's merely jasmine tea—one of my favorites, if you recall."

"Yes," the Wutaian man agreed. "I take it something beneficial has occurred?"

"You could say that," the boy said airily, as he released his tea cup and folded his hands before himself. "What do you know of the recent tragedy in Nibelheim?"

The Wutaian looked distinctly puzzled. "The poor town that burned down not too long ago?" At the other male's nod, he gave a critical frown. "It got attacked and burned down by one of those groups of super dragons they've been plagued by lately. What of it?"

"Ah, I see even you are unaware of the finer details," came the amused response.

The Wutaian's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"The fact that there isn't a report of a single witness account, or story in a town under ShinRa control should be enough of a red flag," the young man said lightly. "How did they come to the conclusion that it was a dragon attack so quickly without a proper investigation?"

The older man's eyes gleamed with anger and his lips tightened. "_Turks_," he spat. The distaste and anger were clear in his tone.

"We have to tell our allies," the Wutaian man began, his voice low but intense, "they'll expose ShinRa and get the public to acknowledge their deceits—"

A hand was held up before him, halting his tirade. A smile flashed across the cloaked male's mouth. "Our friends will soon be pursuing another method of exposing ShinRa and eliminating one of their advantages over us."

"Advantage?"

"Yes. SOLDIERs have always been glorified as heroes to the public, but what will that public do once their esteemed heroes are shown indiscriminately killing the very people they were sworn to protect?"

The Wutaian's eyes widened. "So they found more deserters to convert?" His brown eyes were wary as he seemed to contemplate the situation. "That research information we gave the eco-terrorists—"

"—has been put to very good use, I assure you," the cloaked male said primly, almost sharp in his retort. A smile slid across his lips, softening the prior tone just the slightest bit. "It's even been tested and refined. Once ShinRa proceeds with the Rocket Town launch, our mutual allies will strike and we'll remove the source of everyone's troubles in a single decisive blow."

The Wutaian man's face was completely still, his dark brown eyes filled with caution and wariness. "I see."

At that, the younger man gave another smile. The slightest shift of the material covering his head gave a glimpse of calculating blue eyes. "Once the alpha wolf is put down, the rest of the pack will simply be a crowd of mutts that can be retrained with a firm enough hand." The smugness in the young man's voice made the older man somewhat uneasy. Given the subject, he was also uncomfortable having something so vital discussed in such a manner.

The Wutaian elite closed his eyes as he considered the true meaning behind their conversation.

No more oppression, no more shame...no more _ShinRa_. With this, an end to his people's troubles was within reach.

After a moment he reopened his eyes, revealing the faint hope and determination brewing within his heart. "If you need help getting their cooperation we have trainers who have dealt with methods for particularly unruly pets."

The cloaked young man gave a decidedly pleased smirk. "I'll be sure to take you up on that offer in the future."

...


	8. Those Who Stumble

A/N: *gasp* Another chapter?! Ohmai. Thanks again to Tomoyo-chan284 for betaing! Also, thank you for all the follows, faves, reviews, and alerts guys!

...

* * *

Cloud paused for a break, his arm dangling carefully by his side. A bead of sweat rolled down his face as he eyed the hastily fashioned field dressing he'd made for where the bullet had passed through him. The torn blue fabric from the tail end of his uniform had been placed beneath his green scarf to help conceal the blood but it was clear the effort had been in vain from the deep red stains soaking through the sides of the fabric.

Every step sent a painful jolt through his side and aching arm, but luckily, the blood had long since slowed. His brush with the hidden Turk had been an eye-opening experience for sure. The suited bastard had ambushed him with a gunshot to the back while he was climbing a tree. The resulting drop had most likely broken Cloud's arm, but the idiot had thought the cadet was dead or incapacitated.

The blond smiled grimly to himself as he tried to keep himself out of view of any stragglers. As if a tiny drop like that would be enough to kill a SOLDIER candidate—even a failed one like Cloud. The Turk had obviously been a new recruit or novice, because he'd approached Cloud carelessly and when he'd tried to turn him over, he'd gotten a solid fist to the face before they had tussled over possession of the gun.

He knew Turks were enhanced as soldiers were, albeit for speed and agility rather than power, but Cloud was pretty sure that they couldn't survive a snapped neck after falling down a steep mountain ravine.

The other Turks would find the body and be looking for him soon enough, he supposed.

But that wasn't his main concern right now. Now he was more worried about Zack. He knew his friend wasn't totally recovered from the whole Jenova fiasco, and with the faint marks on the ground, it was obvious that the two SOLDIERs had not left voluntarily. They had expected something like the Turks being sent to apprehend or kill them; now it had been confirmed.

When he had recovered, he had gone back to the area he'd last seen his travelling companions in, only to see the telltale signs of disturbed earth where people had walked upon it. He had followed their tracks only to realize that tire tracks had been there. Cloud was far from stupid; he was almost certain that Zack and the general had not left under their own will. The question was why hadn't they fought harder or tried to get Cloud's attention?

Could both SOLDIERs really be that damaged from the incident?

In theory, he should be more concerned with himself; he was far more expendable than a SOLDIER and easily written off in the system. Cloud had seen many of his comrades abandoned or lost during a mission and the message they received on their PHS would all be the same copy and paste response.

_...was a fine member of ShinRa. They executed their duty as expected of them. Do not treat their death as a loss but rather as an advancement in the peace Shinra is striving towards. In order to honor their memories and continue the struggle for world peace, we will continue the fight with our full might._

Needless to say, he had expected to be gunned down as swiftly as possible—the Turk simply hadn't expected him to fight back.

Still...Zack was in danger. Not to say that the SOLDIER couldn't handle himself—Zack was First Class after all—but that didn't mean that Cloud wasn't allowed to worry.

What really bothered him was the fact that Zack was alone with _Sephiroth_ and in Turk custody. Mostly likely the ShinRa enforcers would have incapacitated both SOLDIERs and would keep them alive, but what if Sephiroth went insane again? In his weakened state, and likely only made worse by their captors, Zack most likely wouldn't have the strength to resist the general just yet.

Or even worse, they could decide to lock the general away-he stubbornly ignored the pang of dismay at the thought—and that Zack was expendable. Then Zack would be executed like a common criminal while Cloud was sitting here wandering around.

_No, no, Zack is probably fine,_ he thought, frowning at his own pessimism. He should be focusing more on keeping an eye out for those damned Turks as he was the one stumbling around with a busted arm and bloody side. They were most likely looking to find him and finish the job.

"Everything will be alright, Cloud," he murmured in determination, continuing his stumbling with wavering vision.

He'd learned that from Zack, right?

A particularly hard stumble over the ground made him lurch a bit to catch his balance. The force of it jolted his arm, causing him to hiss in pain. Gods it _hurt_; it hurt worse than anything he'd ever experienced before. There had been plenty of scares, yes, but no assignment that he'd ever been on had ever resulted in him actually being injured.

It was his first time and not something he planned to repeat anytime soon.

A small snort escaped his lips as he continued to shuffle forward. Of course, he'd never have to do missions after this. He was no longer a part of ShinRa. He wondered what exactly they had listed him under. MIA? KIA? Or maybe desertion?

Cloud shook his head and immediately regretted it as his sight began to blur once more. A hard blink cleared most of the spots dancing across his vision, but the woozy sensation remained. He wanted nothing more than to sit and rest but he had to search for clues to Sephiroth and Zack's whereabouts.

_'Dead dead dead, they're dead,_' his inner voice whispered. '_Don't you get it? They're gone and they're never coming back and it's all_ your _fault._'

The trooper stumbled his way to a nearby tree, where he turned his back to the trunk in order to lean back against it and carefully slid himself into a seated position. His legs, which had been pretty much overworked in the last few hours, were screaming for a break. His injuries were throbbing in time with his heartbeat and the spots dancing across his vision were growing worse.

Against his will, Cloud could feel his eyelids beginning to droop with exhaustion even as he tried his hardest to fight against it. Even though he _knew_ it was a losing battle.

_Am I...going to die here_? he wondered blearily.

There was the sudden crisp sound of footsteps crunching on the detritus of the forest and Cloud managed to lift his head. The effort cost him what little strength he had remaining, but he managed to catch a glimpse of a short male in a dark suit approaching his position before he allowed his eyes to close and his head dropped onto his chest.

_I guess I really wasn't cut out to be a SOLDIER_, he thought before falling into blissful unconsciousness.

…

* * *

Pebbles and woodland debris scraped across the ground as the Turk approached the prone boy on the ground. He had tracked the trooper for some time now, and had been watching his increasingly weakening struggles to stay awake and felt a sharp thread of admiration and sympathy for this boy. Someone who was profiled as weak and unimportant had somehow beaten the odds and had a will of steel hidden under his rather unremarkable records.

_'Unfortunately for Cloud Strife_,' the Turk thought as he finally reached the unconscious boy's side, '_Hojo has taken an interest in him_.'

The Turk crouched down in front of the boy and carefully prodded at the heavy wound in his side. In his slumber, the trooper gave a low moan and squirmed slightly in pain. The Turk eased off a bit and contemplated his next course of action. He hadn't really been expecting the Strife kid to still be alive, truth be told. Most Turks were a deadly force in the most relaxed of circumstances, but to have this boy not only kill a Turk but manage to walk this far with such a wound...

Well, it was safe to say that Cloud Strife was _far_ from weak.

Still...he had a job to do. The Turk used his PHS to radio in his position to the waiting helicopter before returning to his silent scrutiny of the boy.

He'd been unpleasantly surprised when he'd found Silencer's body broken and bleeding at the bottom of the ravine a few miles back, but it had certainly explained the other man's failure to report in. Even if they worked under Hojo more than their own department, they still had to give some kind of status update at regular intervals.

Against his will, the Turk found himself staring at the dark red stain covering nearly half of Strife's right side. Apparently, the bullet had missed anything vital, but it had still done enough damage for Strife's body to feel the strain. If the Turk wanted to be fair...it probably would have been kinder if the boy had died.

The Turk shook his head at his own thoughts and listened to the roar of the chopper approaching in the distance.

"Sorry kid," he murmured, rising to his feet. "But I'm a Turk first and a sympathizer second. And orders are orders."

…

* * *

A/N: Don't hate me. :D


End file.
